The first two F4 races in the city of Pau lived up to their promises, with duels at all levels. Barter held off Arao to win Race 1, while Andriolo did the same in Race 2 against Reis.
The 24 drivers of the French F4 Championship organised by the FFSA Academy were delighted to discover the street circuit of Pau. “I find the track incredible,” confirmed Australian Hugh Barter. “Driving this F4 single-seater between the tracks in the middle of the city with so many spectators around, it’s really different from what I have done previously. A fantastic experience!”
Race 1: Hugh Barter makes the difference at the start
Souta Arao from Japan took the lead in the final minutes of the Qualifying session. Unfortunately for the Red Bull driver, he missed the start slightly, while Hugh Barter took off like a cannonball and was the first to enter the station turn. For 17 laps, the Australian worked hard to hold off his Japanese rival. “I was really happy with my start and managed to open up a small gap at the beginning of the race. Then a few yellow flags came out and Souta took advantage of that to get back into my lead. I had a good pace and I was able to keep him behind me without pushing too hard on the tyres.” This is already the third win for Barter this season, while Arao continues to establish himself as a serious title contender.
There was a great battle for 3rd place. After passing Enzo Peugeot and taking Alessandro Giusti in his wake, Japanese driver Yuto Nomura crashed at Foch and allowed Giusti to complete the podium ahead of Peugeot. Elliott Vayron had a good attacking race from 7th place and finished 5th in front of the Swiss driver Dario Cabanelas, the Colombian Jeronimo Berrio (P12!) and the German Max Reis, in a very international field.
After Pierre-Alexandre Provost’s exit, Enzo Geraci and Romain Andriolo completed the top 10 at the expense of Pablo Sarrazin, who made a remarkable comeback from 16th place.
Race 2: Romain Andriolo from start to finish despite Max Reis
Romain Andriolo was 10th in the Timed Qualifying session and was able to start from pole position on the reverse grid for the top 10 in the Qualifying session. The driver from Toulouse managed his race perfectly to take his first victory in a single-seater. “At Pau, you have to concentrate as much as possible,” he said. “First of all, I was very careful with my start, I absolutely had to keep this 1st place. Then, between the yellow flags, the exit of the safety car, the restart at the green flag and the tyre management, it was never easy. I was fast in the last sector and I tried to come out of the last corner so that Max wouldn’t come and attack me at the station. I am very happy with this success!”
Germany’s Max Reis was frequently pressing, but without finding an opening. The youngest driver of the field nevertheless took a superb 2nd place. Behind him, Elliott Vayron had to wait for a long time behind Pierre-Alexandre Provost, who was in 3rd place from the start. On the last lap, Vayron saw an opportunity to overtake on the brakes at the Lycée, but the cars touched and were stuck on the sidelines. Swiss driver Dario Cabanelas was on the verge of a 3rd place finish ahead of Alessandro Giusti and Hugh Barter, who took advantage of the opportunity to score important points in the Championship.
Pablo Sarrazin achieved a notable feat by moving up from 16th to 7th place on the Palois track where it is never easy to overtake. Lorens Lecertua made an identical gain in places, before dropping back to 15th after a sporting penalty. Panamanian Valentino Mini was 7th ahead of Enzo Geraci, the Indian Amir Sayed and the Andorran Pol Lopez Guttierez. Race 2 ended prematurely for the Japanese driver Souta Arao.
Continuation of the programme in Pau: Race 3, Sunday 8th May from 08:40 to 09:05
> Ranking of Race 1
1 Hugh Barter (Australia) with 17 laps
2 Souta Arao (Japan) at 0″821
3 Alessandro Giusti (France) at 2″002
4 Enzo Peugeot (France) at 8″689
5 Elliott Vayron (France) at 9″477
6 Dario Cabanelas (Switzerland) at 15″620
7 Jeronimo Berrio (Colombia) at 21″439
8 Max Reis (Germany) at 27″127
9 Enzo Geraci (France) at 28″258
10 Romain Andriolo (France) at 30″050
11 Pablo Sarrazin (France) at 30″262
12 Valentino Mini (Panama) at 30″620
13 Lorens Lecertua (Belgium) at 30″977
14 Leny Réveillère (France) at 36″269
15 Pol Lopez Gutierrez (Andorra) at 39″517
16 Enzo Richer (France) at 43″243
17 Antoine Fernande (France) at 57″097
18 Amir Sayed (India) at 57″281
19 Mateo Villagomez (Ecuador) at 1’14″018
20 Luciano Morano (France) at 1’21″576
21 Louis Pelet (France) at 2 laps
22 Yuto Nomura (Japan) at 7 laps
23 Pierre-Alexandre Provost (France) at 7 laps
24 Edgar Pierre (France) at 12 laps
FL: Hugh Barter in 1’17″740 (avg. 127,8 km/h)
> Race 2 classification
1 Romain Andriolo (France) with 16 laps
2 Max Reis (Germany) at 0″523
3 Dario Cabanelas (Switzerland) at 4″815
4 Alessandro Giusti (France) at 4″986
5 Hugh Barter (Australia) at 5″564
6 Pablo Sarrazin (France) at 12″665
7 Valentino Mini (Panama) at 19″626
8 Enzo Geraci (France) at 24″458
9 Amir Sayed (India) at 24″520
10 Pol Lopez Gutierrez (Andorra) at 26″825
11 Edgar Pierre (France) at 39″949
12 Antoine Fernande (France) at 46”623
13 Lorens Lecertua (Belgique) at 49”499
14 Enzo Peugeot (France) at 59”155
15 Elliott Vayron (France) at 59”510
16 Enzo Richer (France) at 1’10”693
17 Pierre-Alexandre Provost (France) at 1’41”790
18 Louis Pelet (France) at 1’41”828
19 Leny Réveillère (France) at 1 lap
20 Souta Arao (Japan) at 3 laps
21 Mateo Villagomez (Ecuador at 6 laps
22 Jeronimo Berrio (Colombia) à 10 tours
Disqualified Luciano Morano (France) à 41”793
Non-starter: Yuto Nomura (Japan)
FL : Hugh Barter in 1’18”373 (avg. 126,7 km/h)
